Life is energy. From cells functionality and plants photosynthetic activity up to all the modern electric networks that we have nowadays. Currently, our energy use is based on fossil fuels, which have allowed us to boost our economy and improve our lifestyle. However, as any technology, its use have some consequences, which in this case are related to environment degradation and climate change.

Also, not everybody has access to this type of energy. Around 16% of the world’s populations have no access to electricity and many more have very poor access to it*. Most of these populations are rural and are located in Sub-Saharan Africa, where people have to struggle every day with issues that would never pop into our heads as a problem in our daily lives. From not having electricity in hospitals at night to not having access to entertainment or just fewer hours to be productive at work and study.

All these put us in a crossroad, where we have to play smart if we want to overcome such social, environmental and, in a very close future, economic issues. So, how can clean energy be increased in Africa? And what can we do if we are living in the UK to promote it?

It’s more and more accessible every day!

Renewable energies are becoming more affordable and easy to install at a small scale. It is an excellent solution for lighting hospitals or put irrigation systems to work in rural communities. Even though there are still some limitations, like no sunlight at night or no-wind days, these clean tech options are a powerful tool to improve people’s quality of life. Besides, new technologies are arising and, for example, solutions for storage problems are not so far from becoming reality.

Solving the problem at household level is crucial in rural areas

Millions of homes across Africa have to spend money on kerosene every day for lighting. This can be a struggle when there is not enough money to buy food and the decision between one or another has to be made, besides being extremely harmful to health. Also, in some cities, the people that have access to energy find it too expensive compared to what they get. Therefore, solar panels have been a sustainable solution for households of different economic levels. An example of this is the work that Translight Solar and Sunny Money are doing in different African communities. At the end, providing alternatives to families is a good way to start and to offer solutions, before scaling to a country level.

There is no single energy solution

Fortunately, in our planet, energy abounds. From watercourses and the wind to sun and radioactivity. All of them are energy manifestations. Therefore, there is no such thing as an only one energy solution, all of them are needed to reach a sustainable supply and to solve the energy problems that many African countries face.

Not copying the Western model

African countries have a big opportunity: follow their own energy strategy, use and access path. Not easy, that’s true, but it’s not impossible. Policymakers need to enable and facilitate the conditions for renewable energies to be competitive compared to fossil fuels options, as well as to promote competition among such companies to improve their quality and protect costumers. Also, making this new technology accessible for rural communities can be one of many solutions to increase their livelihoods levels. An example of this is Vitalite in Zambia, where they’re making solar energy accessible to people with a pay-as-you-go strategy, which adapts to Zambians needs and culture.

There is a lot of work to do

Not just in Africa, but also in the UK. As citizens, we have the right and the duty to request from our governments’ cleaner energy strategies, better political platforms to increase investment and promote its use amongst the society. At the end, it’s also our responsibility to have a more sustainable economy and reduce our carbon footprint.

IT MAY SOUND LIKE A LUDICROUSLY OBVIOUS STATEMENT… BUT AFRICA IS A SUNNY PLACE.

As I perform my daily morning ritual of spraying myself in copious amounts of suntan lotion (so as to prevent myself turning the shade of a lobster) I wonder why many African countries like Ghana are not littered with solar panels powering their houses, shops, and industrial buildings.

My preoccupation with thinking about solar power stems from the fact I’m working at Translight Solar, a Ghanaian company which works in this field. The figure below shows ‘solar horizontal irradiation’ – a fancy way of saying how much sun an area gets. Look at how little sun a place like Germany (which is a solar giant) receives compared to most African countries. Surely Ghana, along with many other African countries, should be in a prime position to fully harness all the sun it benefits from. Yet solar capacity is still at a relatively low rate – Ghana’s modest target of ensuring 10% of the energy mix is renewable by 2020 is unlikely to be met. All this begs the question…why in Ghana, alongside other African countries, is solar power far less ubiquitous than it could be?

DUMSOR

On arrival in the country, we were advised that if you ever needed to make small-talk with a Ghanaian, you should mention ECG (Electricity Company of Ghana) to them. ECG, the nationalised energy company, is notorious for its rolling blackouts. The occurrence is so regular a phrase has been coined in their local language – ‘Dum-sor’ (off-on) – to describe them, and Ghanaians are well known for berating the organisation – just as the British are known to passionately moan about the weather.

The regular blackouts are one of the most striking things about moving to Ghana – reading a book before bed with just my head-torch for illumination has become a semi-regular occurrence. Yet whilst ECG’s performance seems bad now (at least relative to my experience of constant power in the UK), ECG was in fact far worse around a year ago, when blackouts of up to 24 hours were common.

When there is a crisis in the grid, alternatives become a lot more attractive, and the solar business boomed. But since the energy crisis has subdued, so too have solar installations. If there are such clear advantages to solar, what explains the slow-down in business? Does ECG need to get worse before solar can continue to grow?

Part of the problem is that solar energy is still seen by many as a luxury, not a necessity. Whilst the price of solar panels has plummeted in recent years, the cost of storing the energy still remains relatively high, so even though in the long run moving to solar is significantly cheaper, there is still a significant initial cost to be made. Western countries with strong solar take-up solve this issue either by subsidising the process (which the Ghanaian government seem unlikely to do), or ensure consumers have access to credit to finance the cost of installation themselves.

WHAT’S DIFFERENT IN AFRICA THEN?

This is where we arrive at one of the main issues… lack of finance. Because banks have not developed comprehensive credit history reporting systems to assess risk, consumers face eye-wateringly high interest rates and short repayment periods. Furthermore, a lack of finance doesn’t just affect consumers – it also affects businesses within the solar market. Without boring you by going into the economics of bank lending in many African countries, it is often more profitable for banks to lend to governments than to consumers… this leads to prohibitively high interest rates for SMEs (small- and medium-sized enterprises) of between 20-45%.

THE SITUATION IS NOT ALL DOOM AND GLOOM, HOWEVER, THE FUTURE OF SOLAR APPEARS BRIGHT.

Companies such as Translight Solar are developing innovative products and payment systems to make solar systems much more affordable, enabling a far higher number of people to gain access to a clean, cheap and reliable source of energy. Ultimately solar energy should be viewed not as a luxury, but as a necessity. Having a more reliable source of energy will also boost productivity and ultimately economic growth, raising everyone’s standard of living. The only downside may be consigning the Ghanaian national hobby of complaining about ECG into a thing of the past.

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